Head-Spinning Political Shit!

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by dreadgeek

It's bizarre. I understand that politicians speak in generalities but this has gotten elevated to something creepy. It's not quite as bad as what's below but I'm not really stretching things too badly:

Moderator: So, Ms GOP candidate, do you think that hospitals should be able to turn away the same-sex partner of a patient because that doctor or nurse doesn't consider them family?

GOP candidate: I believe in strengthening the traditional family which is a man and a woman.

Moderator: What specific proposals do you have for ameliorating the trouble in the housing market?

GOP candidate: We don't need government in the housing business. If we let the free market drive the housing business then it will work out the best solution.

Moderator: Do you support non-discrimination laws in housing or employment?

GOP candidate: I believe that the free market will reward companies that behave well and punish companies that behave badly.

Moderator: Are there any military bases you would close or weapon systems you would like to see the Pentagon not purchase?

GOP candidate: America is free because we have the best and strongest military in the world. I support our troops.

Moderator: Are there any non-military functions you think the government should be involved in?

GOP candidate: Throughout American history we've seen that we do best when we embrace free market principles.

Moderator: What place do you think religion should have on public policy and law?

GOP candidate: America was founded as a Christian nation and our rights come from God.

Now, is there anything above that you think is too over-the-top to come out of the mouth of some GOP pol when asked one of those questions? I took some of those answers, nearly verbatim, from the GOP presidential debate last night. Those answers are empty. They are mantras not responses. One would not be stretching the matter too much if you were to imagine a GOP call and response chorus"Jobs?" "Free market!" "Pollution?" "Free market!" You get the idea. The GOP has become a party of theology. By that I mean that they have completely divorced their ideology from the real world. It simply does not *matter* what the empirical facts are any longer. All that matters is that they believe it to be true and that is enough for them. Anyone who does not believe is an infidel.

Cheers
Aj

Yes, infidels, every one!

What you speak to in terms of mantras and empty GOP cheerleading resonates with me. I see it with the Dems at times during elections as well and it just plain angers me. Say something often enough, it gains truth status- even in the face of solid research data that refutes it. This is the dumbing-down of the general voting public rhetoric within politics today that leaves me seething.

Believing that the free market system will self-correct to the benefit of anyone that is not wealthy is just plain false. In fact, this very free market system is at the root of our economic strife right now for the general US population. And the very people that shout out the perils of government regulation and size live totally outside of the same reality of middle, lower-middle and working class people.

I can struggle internally about some of government restrictions on small business- and I am talking about real small businesses- not S status businesses that make tens of millions of dollars in profit each year and enjoy tax exemptions that if applied to median income people would make a very big difference to them. Some regulation does get in the way of small businesses being able to keep their work force employed- but the big, multi-national S corps making record profits in the billions are withholding job creation in the private sector and are the ones that profit by relocation in other countries. Franchisees like, your local Ace hardware, for example, do have a hell of a time staying afloat these days in paying an inordinate amount of taxes as compared to giants of industry like Shell Oil, etc.

The free market system benefits a very small group of elite corporations at the top- not the businesses most of us interact with in our everyday lives.

But, I digress.. yes, the mantras prevail and for the life of me, I did not see one thinking human being on that stage Monday night that had a substantive proposal to actually create more jobs that the US can look foreword to having in the future in a very different time than post-WWII. What worked economically then, will not now and we have to face this truth.

Without keeping talent that gets educated in the US only to return to another country due to our insane immigration/citizenship policies along with accepting that science and technology is the present and future economic road to advancement- we are not going to get out of this economic rut. Our educational system is very broken and we are the laughing stock of the world in terms of this. We can't allow mediocrity to prevail in our schools- we do need the best and the brightest teaching in our schools which means much higher standards and pay for our educators. And this is going to take much more in early childhood education bolstered with quality supports for at risk kids. Trying to change things later in schools is just stupid- start from pre-school ages (the least respected and paid educators in the US). And we need to face the fact that not every kid is “college material” and there is nothing wrong with this- but build trade education and apprenticeship programs up.

When are we going to call out the mantra cult-like state of our politicians and say ENOUGH? I don't believe this will change, however, until or unless we have publically funded election systems and stop all private contributions. Silly me. I can’t help but think about what the billions of dollars spent on elections in the US could mean for building a state of the art educational system that actually is equal in opportunity and addresses the skills and potential contributions of all children. I know, I’m a dreamer.